10 Ways Holt Donors Are Changing The World!

We are starting 2019 inspired and filled with gratitude — all because of our donors! Thank you to every child sponsor, every donor, every advocate and every person who donated their time, money or social media platform to help a child in need this year!

Because of you…

Boys and girls learned they could go to school — in some cases for the first time! They received uniforms, books and supplies.

Children in orphanages received the one-on-one care they need to grow and thrive. Hundreds joined adoptive families. Many finally felt loved and accepted, joining foster families and group homes free from stigma and ridicule.

Single moms received job skills training, parenting help, free daycare support, and some even received new homes! Many more finally felt like they had a team of support wrapping them in encouragement and hope for the future with services like community savings programs, microloans, livestock training, counseling and much, much more.

Some women — and many children — fled or were rescued from violent situations.

Here are 10 ways you are changing the world through your compassion, kindness and incredible generosity!

1. You helped kids. LOTS of kids.

Thank you to every child sponsor, every donor, every advocate and every person who donated their time, money or social media platform to help a child in need this year!

The kids you helped aren’t just any kids. They are among the most vulnerable in the world. They are facing multiple hardships or they’ve lost everything — including their family. When you see the smiling faces below, know that you gave these kids more than food and clothing. You gave them hope. In 13 countries around the world, you truly rescued kids who needed you.

2. You fed the hungry.

Thank you for feeding hungry children!

Without you, children would have gone to sleep hungry. They might have suffered the irreversible effects of malnutrition. They may have gone to school without breakfast and nothing to eat for lunch. But because of you, their basic needs were met.

3. You cared for orphans.

Thank you for caring for children!

No other organization can help children living in overcrowded, underserved orphanages the way we can. But you are the reason these children received the help they needed! In China, you helped HIV+ children stop living in total isolation by joining family-like group homes. Through the Peace House in Beijing, you helped orphaned and abandoned children finally receive lifesaving and life-changing surgeries as well as the nurturing care they needed to make a full recovery afterward. You provided for older children’s basic needs and helped them stay in school. You ensured kids in orphanages were safe and cherished.

4. You brought families together!

Thank you for advocating for children!

Holt International relies on donors to care for kids in orphanages AND provide the advocacy work they need to join families of their own! Child sponsors and donors bring children and adoptive families together, both in the U.S. and in nearly every country where we have programs. Not only do you help children join families in the U.S., but more often than not, you help children join families in the country and culture of their birth!

5. You helped erase the stigma of special needs!

Thank you for helping children with special needs!

Today, the vast majority of children waiting for adoptive families in the U.S. have some kind of special needs. In many of the countries where Holt works, children with special needs are much more likely to be abandoned because the cost to provide medical care remains extremely prohibitive. In many places, an enduring stigma against people with disabilities is another major reason that families feel compelled to abandon or relinquish children with special needs.

But we are so happy and excited to see more and more families open their hearts and homes to children with complex, often misunderstood special needs. We know that you believe in what we do: that EVERY child is beautiful and EVERY child deserves a home. Without your help and advocacy, many of these children might never join a family of their own.

Did you know that giving a farm animal — like a goat, a flock of chickens or a cow — has almost the same effect as opening a savings account for a struggling family in an impoverished place?

Giving farm animals is one of the most effective ways to help families escape poverty forever! Milk and eggs provide protein for growing kids. Manure helps fertilize gardens. Extra milk and eggs can be sold for enough profit to send children to school and afford regular doctor visits. A farm animal can be the unexpected miracle a family needs to grow strong and stable! Thank you for donating livestock through our Gifts of Hope catalog!

8. You sent 22,413 kids to school!

Thank you for sending children to school!

Thank you for giving kids exactly what they need to grow up safe and healthy, learn the skills to compete for good jobs and eventually escape poverty forever! Not only does your gift of educational scholarships ensure that poverty doesn’t rob them of their future, it helps protect them from child trafficking and child labor. And for girls growing up in patriarchal societies, school scholarships protect them for child marriage and ensure they have the same opportunities to succeed in life as boys!

9. You transformed entire communities!

Thank you for supporting communities!

You kept children safe and warm after school by opening libraries. You provided hygiene training in remote villages. You helped hospitals and clinics serve thousands of patients. You opened community saving groups and women’s support groups. You raised awareness about child trafficking in places like Cambodia and Thailand. You helped communities in drought access clean water. You provided veterinary training and care. Without you, none of these services would have been possible.